Kolkata: The ministry of new and renewable energy has agreed on a proposal by solar power expert SP Gon Chaudhuri to have land-neutral solar power installations on waterbodies. There is a major dearth of adequate land in states like Bengal, Bihar, Odisha and Assam to generate solar energy to meet India's target of 60,000 MW of land-based solar energy under the National Solar Mission by 2022.

The National Institute of Solar Energy along with the city-based NB Institute of Rural Technology headed by Gon Chaudhuri will conduct a study to identify waterbodies and huge structures like rail stations and stadiums to install floating solar panels in Bengal. "We expect the study to start off after the monsoons," Gon Chaudhuri said.

He added that under the National Solar Mission, the total target is to generate 1 lakh MW of solar power across the country by 2022, out of which 40,000 MW should be generated from rooftop solar installations and the rest 60,000 MW should come from land-based solar installations. "The problem is the non-availability of adequate land in many states. In Bengal, around 300 acre of land is required for the necessary solar installations to generate the power but scarcity of land is the main hindrance," he said.

The solar power expert said that to make up the unavailability of land, floating solar panel installations on waterbodies is the only option. "It is found that around 3 lakh MW of solar power could be generated by tapping around 10-15% of waterbodies. States like Bengal, Bihar, Kerala, Odisha and Assam are the most potential ones for developing land-neutral solar power technology," he said.

The study that would be conducted would entail identifying such waterbodies that would be suitable for having floating solar installations. Satellite images would be mapped. "Not only waterbodies, huge structures like stadiums and rail station sheds could also be considered," Gon Chaudhuri said.

The country's first floating solar power plant was installed on January 2015 in New Town jointly by the Arka-Ignou Community College of Renewable Energy, headed by Gon Chaudhuri and the New Town Kolkata Development Authority. "Developing floating solar panels also has its own benefits since it not only generates pollution-free solar power but also help emit less carbon dioxide," Gon Chaudhuri said.